Justice News

Federal Jury Convicts Milwaukee Man of Transporting a Minor to Illinois from Wisconsin to Engage in Prostitution

CHICAGO — A Milwaukee man was convicted in federal court today of transporting an underage girl to the Chicago area from Wisconsin to engage in prostitution.

DAJUAN KEY, 32, brought the girl to the Chicago area from Madison, Wisc., in September 2013. At the time, the victim was 15 years old. Once in the Chicago area, Key forced the girl to engage in commercial sex acts, with Key keeping all of the money.

After a three-day trial in federal court in Chicago, the jury convicted Key on one count of knowingly transporting a minor from Wisconsin to Illinois to engage in prostitution. The conviction is punishable by a mandatory minimum of ten years and a maximum of life in prison.

U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Kendall scheduled a sentencing hearing for May 23, 2016, at 10:00 a.m.

Evidence at Key’s trial revealed that Key encountered a minor online and travelled to Madison to pick her up and bring her to southwest suburban Romeoville. Key took photographs of the girl, provided her with lingerie to wear, and posted advertisements on the website Backpage.com. Key rented multiple hotel rooms that were used for encounters with individuals who responded to the advertisements. Key then collected all of the money earned by the minor victim.

The victim was rescued by officers of the Romeoville Police Department on Sept. 10, 2013, and Key was arrested.

The conviction was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Romeoville Police Department provided assistance.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force. The CETF is part of a nationwide effort known as the Innocence Lost National Initiative targeting the commercial sexual exploitation of children in the United States. In Chicago, the CETF is composed of FBI special agents and investigators from the Chicago Police Department, the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.

The government is represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Katherine Sawyer and Christopher V. Parente.